Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
First Millennium BC (first + millennium_bc)
Selected AbstractsTephra-linked peat humification records from Irish ombrotrophic bogs question nature of solar forcing at 850 cal. yr BC,JOURNAL OF QUATERNARY SCIENCE, Issue 1 2006G. Plunkett Abstract This paper investigates evidence for palaeoclimatic changes during the period ca. 1500,500,cal.,yr BC through peat humification studies on seven Irish ombrotrophic bogs. The sites are well-correlated by the identification of three mid-first millennium BC tephras, which enable the humification records at specific points in time to be directly compared. Phases of temporarily increased wetness are suggested at ca. 1300,1250,cal.,yr BC, ca. 1150,1050 cal.,yr BC, ca. 940,cal.,yr BC and ca. 740,cal.,yr BC. The last of these is confirmed to be synchronous at five sites, suggesting external forcing on a regional scale. The timing of this wet-shift is constrained by two closely dated tephras and is demonstrated to be distinct from the widely reported changes to cooler/wetter conditions associated with a solar minimum at 850,760,cal.,yr BC, at which time the Irish sites appear instead to experience drier conditions. The results suggest the possibility of either non-uniform responses to solar forcing in northwest Europe at this time, or the existence of unrelated climate events in the early first millennium BC. The findings caution against the correlation of loosely dated palaeoclimate data if the effects of forcing mechanisms are to be understood. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] COULD YOU TAKE A PICTURE OF MY BOAT, PLEASE?OXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 4 2008THE USE AND SIGNIFICANCE OF MEDITERRANEAN SHIP REPRESENTATIONS Summary Representations of ships, sailors and seafarers are common in many ancient societies. They were carved, drawn or painted on a great variety of raw materials , stone, wood, metal, textiles and pottery , and can be found in settings such as caves, tombs or royal palaces. Their presence at these sites raises the possibility that these images of maritime life have symbolic or ritual connotations. This paper presents examples of representations of Phoenician and Punic ships from the first millennium BC, in an attempt to understand the role of both their creators and their audiences. These images are subsequently analysed in more detail, focusing on their technical features and their historical contexts. This paper concludes with a consideration of the social and religious aspects of ancient Mediterranean navigation. [source] USING AND ABANDONING ROUNDHOUSES: A REINTERPRETATION OF THE EVIDENCE FROM LATE BRONZE AGE,EARLY IRON AGE SOUTHERN ENGLANDOXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 2 2007LEO WEBLEY Summary. It has recently been demonstrated that a number of roundhouses of the early first millennium BC in southern England show a concentration of finds in the southern half of the building. It has thus been argued that this area was used for domestic activities such as food preparation, an idea which has formed the basis for discussion of later prehistoric ,cosmologies'. However, reconsideration of the evidence suggests that this finds patterning does not relate to the everyday use of the buildings, being more likely to derive from a particular set of house abandonment practices. Furthermore, evidence can be identified for the location of domestic activities within contemporary roundhouses that appears to contradict the established model. [source] Later Prehistory in South-East Scotland: A Critical ReviewOXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 4 2001D.W. Harding This paper reviews the progress of research over the past twenty years, with particular reference to enclosed and unenclosed settlement, agricultural patterns, domestic structural types and burial practices of the Iron Age in the south-eastern Borders. The concept of a ,trend towards enclosure' in the first millennium BC is reviewed and rejected, not least on the grounds of evidence from excavation for the dating sequences of major enclosed sites. In consequence a new overview of the later prehistoric settlement of the region is now possible, consistent with the accumulating archaeological and environmental data. [source] The Iron Age in Western Spain (800 BC,AD 50): An OverviewOXFORD JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY, Issue 1 2000Jseús R. Álvarez-Sanchís Vettonia was one of the most important Celtic regions in Iberia which emerged in the Iron Age. It corresponds largely to western Spain, between the Duero and Tagus valleys. The archaeological evidence indicates that the formation of this ethnic group lay in an historical process whose roots went back to the Late Bronze Age-Early Iron Age, when we begin to find a regular association between the first fortified sites and stable populations. These groups did not consolidate before the second half of the first millennium BC, in parallel with the development of other peoples of the interior of the Iberian Peninsula. This period can be recognized in particular through the spread of the ritual of cremation, ironworking, the adoption of the potter's wheel and the expansion of some settlements oppida which were ultimately to disappear with the Roman conquest. This paper sets out to examine the evolution of the area from an indigenous perspective, examining the process of change before and after the evidence referred to by Greek and Roman writers. [source] Cylinder seals and their use in the Arabian PeninsulaARABIAN ARCHAEOLOGY AND EPIGRAPHY, Issue 1 2010D.T. Potts Cylinder seals were used in the ancient Near East from the fourth to the first millennium BC. Although the numbers known from sites in the Arabian Peninsula seem relatively small, more have been found there than is generally recognised. A comprehensive overview of the cylinder seals of Arabia is presented, and the cylinder and stamp sealing traditions of the region are discussed. [source] Temple, Economy, and Religion in First Millennium BabyloniaRELIGION COMPASS (ELECTRONIC), Issue 6 2008Michael Kozuh The study of economy and religion in Babylonia during the first millennium bc is primarily that of two well-documented temples, the Eanna temple of the city of Uruk and the Ebabbar of Sippar. The administrative archives of those temples , consisting of tens of thousands of cuneiform texts , allow us to understand parts of the temple economy in great detail, while at the same time this abundance of material frustrates traditional approaches to Babylonian religion. This essay aims in general to emphasize that Babylonian temples were large-scale, multifaceted religious institutions. Capitalizing on recent advancements in our technical understanding of the temple economy, it integrates these advancements into issues of broader religious, historical, intellectual, and economic significance. In particular, it stresses three points: first, the temples' amalgamated ruling structure fostered institutional permanence and should therefore be understood as a challenge to the ,temple-as-household' metaphor; second, large-scale centralization of wealth in the temples was necessary for advancements in Babylonian learned culture (especially in astronomy and mathematics); and, finally, the centralization of manpower in the temples gave them particular advantages in the politics of the first millennium bc. In the end, I argue that all of these are in fact manifestations of Babylonian religion in themselves. [source] GLAZED CERAMIC MANUFACTURING IN SOUTHERN TUSCANY (ITALY): EVIDENCE OF TECHNOLOGICAL CONTINUITY THROUGHOUT THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD (10TH,14TH CENTURIES),ARCHAEOMETRY, Issue 1 2008C. FORTINA Archaeometric investigation allowed the characterization of two important classes of ceramics: ,vetrina sparsa' and ,invetriata grezza'. Their archaeological peculiarity makes them particularly suited for tracing the evolution of glaze manufacturing in southern Tuscany throughout the medieval period (10th,14th centuries). These ceramics were found in different sites of historical importance, and also from a mining perspective. Local copper, lead, zinc and iron mineralizations supported the growth of several settlements in the vicinity of the mines. The many castles and different archaeological finds (ceramics, glazed ceramic, slag etc.) attest to the intense mineral exploitation of the area from at least the first millennium bc up to the modern period. In light of these geological and archaeological characteristics, archaeometric investigation was intended to provide insight into ancient technical knowledge of ceramic glazing and to determine the source area for raw materials in the medieval period (10th,14th centuries). Ceramic bodies were analysed through OM, XRDp, SEM,EDS and XRF, while coatings were investigated through SEM,EDS. Mineralogical, petrographic and chemical analyses revealed slightly different preparation and firing processes for the two classes of ceramics. These data suggest the continuity through the centuries of the ,vetrina sparsa' and ,invetriata grezza' production technology. The mineralogical phases, such as monazite, xenotime, zircon, barite, Ti oxide, ilmenite, titanite, tourmaline and ilvaite, and the lithic (intrusive and volcanic) fragments detected within the ceramic bodies suggest a source area in the vicinity of the Campiglia mining district. Lastly, the presence of Cu,Zn,Pb (Ag) and Fe sulphide mineralizations (materials used to produce glaze) in the area supports the hypothesis of local manufacture. [source] | ||||||||||